Alameda County CA Archives Obituaries.....Mendenhall, Asa Vartner January 9, 1931 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ca/cafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Steve Harrison raleighwood@juno.com May 18, 2010, 3:04 pm Oakland Tribune, January 10, 1931 Oakland Tribune (Oakland, California) January 10, 1931 (Saturday) Page 1, Column 2 [portrait of Asa Mendenhall with article] “Quiz Begun to Find Motive in Suicide of Mendenhall Funeral services for Asa V[artner] Mendenhall, 63, of Oakland, pioneer California lawyer, were pending today as coroner’s deputies and police investigators launched an investigation to determine the motive for the prominent barrister’s suicide in his apartment, 1651 Fruitvale avenue yesterday afternoon. Mendenhall, a cousin of Lois Pantages, wife of the theater man was found, shot through the temple, in his bachelor apartment. He was dead. Absence of motive for the act spurned officials on in their investigation. Although he was estranged from his wife, friends said that he no longer brooded over the situation but took it philosophically. His health and financial condition, they said, was excellent. Four sealed notes, turned over to relatives and a business associate, were expected to reveal a probable cause. They were addressed to his wife, Nelda, 801 W[?] Vista avenue, his son and daughter, Sad[?] and Edwin Mendenhall, 1821 Ardley avenue, a brother, D[avid] A[rcher] Mendenhall of Palo Alto and one to P. W. Rov[?], 3124 East Fourteenth street, a business associate. They were delivered without being opened. Clyde Drennan, deputy coroner, was told by the son, Edwin, that his note contained nothing more than a “cheerful admonition” not to take “the thing too hard,” and concluded with “this is the best way out.” In his letter to his daughter he said he was “sorry” that things should turn out as they did. Mendenhall’s parents, he told friends, were the first white people to marry in the state of California. He had occupied the Fruitvale avenue apartment alone for several months. His love for horses, developed in the stage coach days, resulted in his purchase of the famous Santa Rita stock farm near Pleasanton for $40,000 in 1921. Mendenhall was a member of one of California’s early families. Some of his relatives include J. V. Mendenhall, head of the California Delta Farms and the Holland Land Company, a cousin, and Mrs. Roderick W. Church, 61 Fairview avenue, Piedmont, an aunt. Mendenhall was a familiar figure in local and national horse shows and race meetings.” END AND Oakland Tribune (Oakland, California) January 12, 1931 (Monday) Page 10, Column 3 “Funeral Held for Asa Mendenhall Funeral services were held today for Asa V. Mendenhall, pioneer Alameda county attorney and sportsman, who died Friday afternoon after shooting himself in his apartment at 1651 Fruitvale avenue. Only relatives attended the services, held at Grant D. Miller’s mortuary at 2372 East Fourteenth street. Cremation followed at the California crematorium. The inquest probably will be held Friday, it was announced. A member of one of his county’s oldest families, Mendenhall had practiced law and officiated at horse shows here for many years. He was admitted to the bar in 1898, and he owned the Santa Rita stock farm near Pleasanton in 1921. His father, William Mendenhall, was an early Livermore settler. He was the father of Edwin and Sally Mendenhall, and brother of Archie Mendenhall [David Archer Mendenhall], Emma Block, Ettie [Etta] Carrick and Ella Langdon [Langan].” END Additional Comments: Note that there are two article above. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/alameda/obits/m/mendenha117ob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/cafiles/ File size: 4.0 Kb